


A Second Waltz

by bravestnotts



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Pre-Relationship, dedicated to the widojest discord, i tried and we'll see if i succeeded, overuse of commas, this is yalls fault
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-09-22 12:30:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17059802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bravestnotts/pseuds/bravestnotts
Summary: Caleb and Jester share a second dance, this time at a ball outside the Lavish Chateau.-----another dance fic that no one specifically asked for but it's here anyway





	A Second Waltz

**Author's Note:**

> welcome to rarepair hell

“Hey. Blue or white?”

Jester glanced up from her notebook, partway through a sketch of a possible tattoo, to see Beau holding up a tailored vest in each hand and looking skeptically between them. Tapping her quill on her chin, Jester eyed them before pointing decisively. 

“The white one,” Jester declared with a nod. “It’s got the gold on it and it’s prettier. Plus it’ll go really well with the shirt Mama got you.”

“Yeah, alright. White it is.” Beau headed back to her bed on the opposite side of their shared room, tossing the blue vest into the reject pile on her way. “Thanks, Jessie. How many hours do we have left?”

Jester glanced towards the window, squinting at the sky to try and guess the hour. Caleb would know easier, but she shrugged. “Oh, you know, maybe two or three hours? I think they’re setting up the streamers and things now to make it really pretty.”

“Cool. I’m gonna find Deuce, make sure he’s still with the program.” Beau slung her staff over her shoulder and made for the door. “I’ll be back.”

It had all been mainly on Jester’s insistence. After so much time at sea, they couldn’t not go to a ball, could they? It was being held just outside, too, in the street outside of the Lavish Chateau, and it was in her mother’s honor, so the others caved within a few minutes. In truth, she just really wanted one night to dress super fancy and enjoy herself without worrying about anything. It had been so long since they’d been to a festival and she just knew this one would be perfect. 

Anticipation made the afternoon pass with painful slowness. Jester tried to force time to speed up by making the rounds to the other rooms, gleefully inspecting chosen outfits and offering unasked for suggestions. Fjord politely declined to wear one of the pirate hats she’d taken from Avantika’s room but she did pass it off to Caduceus, so it was fine. She even added a pink ribbon around the brim to match his hair.

One room, though, had been annoyingly hard to nose into. Caleb and Nott’s was the last in the row and she swore she could hear their conversation quiet each time she skipped down the hallway. Finally, on her third cycle, the door opened a crack.

“Caleb’s busy,” Nott said, staring up at Jester. “What do you want?”

“Do you guys have everything ready? Everyone’s got their dresses and hats and things but I really want to see what you two have, too.” She crouched, putting herself at face level with Nott. “Do you want me to braid your hair and stuff? It’d be super cute.”

“Oh, I’m just going to be a little gnome girl, but maybe if you wanted to add a few flowers…” Nott trailed off, glancing behind her. There must have been some silent communication from Caleb because the door swung open a second later. “Okay, you can come in.”

The mound of clothes on one of the beds caught Jester’s eye first, followed by Caleb next to it. For once, he’d lost some of the raggedness that he always seemed to hide behind. He looked up as she entered and nodded her way.

“We still have two and a half hours, ja? Or has the time changed?” he asked, head tilting. 

“Oh no, no, it’s still at sunset. I’m just really bored.” She sat on the free bed, patting the mattress in front of her. “Come on, Nott. I can put flowers in some braids.”

Nott settled in front of her, shaking out her hair. Jester spotted the remains of the old, dead flowers she’d returned after the dragon and carefully plucked them out. Some were so withered that they crumbled under her fingertips. She frowned and gently nudged Nott’s shoulder.

“Hey Nott, your old flowers are kinda dead.” When Nott looked back, she demonstrated by blowing some of the flower dust off her fingers. “I think there’s some fresh ones on the landing, though.”

“Ooh, I’ll take them.” Nott slid off the bed, pulling her cloak up on the way out. She shut the door quietly as she slipped out and Jester couldn’t even hear her tiny footfalls as she went in search of flowers.

Caleb’s quiet huff of laughter, though, she did hear. When she looked over, though, he was looking down at the assortment of clothes spread over his bed. A few moments of quiet passed before she stood, approaching to get a better look.

“Have you ever been to fancy dances before, Caleb?” 

He frowned so briefly she nearly missed it, but he nodded. “A long time ago. I haven’t been to any in Nicodranas, though. What about you?” He picked up a few more shirts, folding them carefully as he looked back at her.

“Not really, no.” She turned her attention to the selection remaining, eyeing them over. Some were too frilly for him, she could tell just by looking. One, though, caught her eye. It was dark blue, fitted but it wouldn’t be too tight. “I watched some from my window, though. Hey, try this one. I think you’d look good in it.”

“Ah, are you sure?” Caleb took it, tugging on one of the sleeves. “I had been looking at another one, but you are the expert here.”

“Your eyes are a pretty blue so I think blue’s your color.” Jester grinned as a faint bit of color appeared high on his cheeks. “I’m also blue,” she added as an afterthought, “so I’m maybe biased. But it’s a good color.”

“I agree with you,” he said, quietly enough that she almost missed it. “The blue shirt it is.” It joined the rest of his chosen outfit near the edge of the bed. For a few moments, there was silence. 

“I hope Nott wasn’t--”

“Do you wanna show--”

They both started and stopped in unison. Caleb smiled, gesturing for her to go ahead. She shrugged and continued. 

“Do you wanna show me the whole outfit?”

He stared at her for a moment of silence. “There is not much privacy in here to change, I’m afraid.”

“But Caaay-leb,” she started, stringing out his name. “You know I’ve already seen so many dicks, I don’t mind. I’ve even seen yours, you don’t have to be shy.”

Jester had never seen his face turn so red so quickly. It was delightful and so cute. She clapped her hands, grinning as he rubbed his palms over his cheeks. It took a moment of spluttering for him to begin forming words into a meaningful sentence. 

“I’m aware we all went to a bath house together, Jester,” he said, slowly. The color in his cheeks showed no sign of receding yet. “But this is a room in an inn, so it’s a little different, ja?”

“Are you shy~? I don’t think you have anything to be ash-”

To Jester’s slight disappointment, but assuredly to Caleb’s relief, the door swung open. Nott, triumphantly gripping a fistful of red carnations by the stem, hurried in and locked it behind her. She made straight for her bed, climbing back up to her previous spot.

“The minotaur man nearly caught me but I got them,” she announced, glancing back to Caleb and Jester. There was a pause as she took in his blush and her teasing smile before she opened her mouth to comment.

“Ah, well, I am glad you made it back,” Caleb interjected, heading off any possible questions. “I am going to find a.. a washroom. I’ll return.” Without waiting for a response, he hurried for the door.

Nott eyed Jester. Jester shrugged, grinned, and took the carnations without explanation. She settled in behind Nott, using her fingers to comb sections of her somewhat snarled, dark hair. It was easy to settle into a rhythm of quiet braiding as she began working the flowers into the pattern, although she kept finding her concentration drifting off towards the night’s festivities. 

She couldn’t wait.

-

Sunset couldn’t keep itself away forever. As the sky got darker, Jester’s excitement grew exponentially. About an hour before sundown, after she finished Nott’s hair, she caved and put on her dress. It was a birthday gift from her mom the year before her exile from Nicodranas and she’d loved it since she first set eyes on the pink, flowy skirt. Even better were the gems in the bodice; they were blue, of course, because she was the Little Sapphire after all, with one red ruby. Helping Beau get ready provided an outlet for her enthusiasm and proved to be needed. She returned only half an hour before the ball’s start, muttering something about having been trying to find the Professor. 

Jester nearly ran down the stairs as the sun started dipping below the horizon. A few of the Nein were already downstairs, watching as the attendees began trickling in. Nott and Caleb were the last two to arrive. Nott - a gnome girl, now, and looking a bit like a fancier Twiggy - made straight for the bar as she arrived. Caleb followed and Jester blinked.

He cleaned up so well, to the point where she was amazed. Dropping his ragged clothes gave him a noticeable presence. For tonight, at least, he wasn’t blending in as a nearly invisible beggar. He looked good. 

“Jester?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She’d stared for too long. “It’s nothing! Let’s go out, you guys. I want to dance!” She could feel her cheeks start to grow warm as she hurried for the door and pushed out into the warm night air. 

-

Jester had underestimated the size of the crowd. Although a number of the Nein generally stood out, there were so many faces that, one by one, they drifted away. Beau had been the first, leaving right behind a tall, green skinned tiefling woman. Nott was hard to spot no matter what and she was pretty sure she’d left to find unwatched bags. Fjord and Caduceus were… somewhere, probably. She frowned as she scanned unfamiliar faces, looking for a splash of pink or green and finding nothing.

“Ah, there you are.” Caleb’s voice came from almost directly behind her. “I’m glad I found you.”

“Caleb!” She turned quickly, relieved to find someone familiar. “I’m glad you found me. I saw Beau leave with a lady. Do you know where the others are?”

He stopped next to her, frowning out into the crowd. As he searched, she took the opportunity to watch him. The last time they’d been at a party, he’d been drinking heavily and she’d been worried. Tonight, though, he still looked sober. Before she could figure out why she felt relieved about that, he shook his head and looked back.

“I do not. If it gets worrying, I can message them, I have the components.” Caleb patted one of his pockets. His expression shifted, though, to something hesitant. “I, ah, I have a question for you.”

“What kind of question?” Jester asked in return. “If this is about what we talked about in your room-”

“No, no,” he interrupted quickly. “Not at all.” He glanced out over the crowd, towards the musicians. “I recall you were a good dancer. Would you like to join me? Maybe a second dance, better than the one in Hupperdook.”

Her eyes widened as she gasped in delight. “I’d love to, Caleb! Come on.”

It was necessary to take his hand, of course, just so they wouldn’t be separated on the way to the other dancers. It helped that it made her heart feel like it swelled and her stomach do flip flops, but it was strictly out of necessity. It was not necessary for him to squeeze her hand in return.

A quick waltz was playing as they reached the other couples, something she’d heard played in the inn on a few occasions. It was easy to find the rhythm as she pulled him in, setting a hand on his side as his found her hip. Soon they were off, spinning through the crowd. He was an easy partner to dance with, although she didn’t have much to compare to. The Traveler had a good sense of rhythm but he wasn’t as there, as present, as Caleb was. 

When Jester pressed in a little closer, definitely just to not hit someone, he tightened his arm around her back in kind. As the music built, he suddenly released her. Right as she felt a momentary stab of disappointment, she felt a guiding hand on her elbow, urging her to spin. Laughing, she spun under his arm and leaned back in as he caught her. 

“Where did you learn how to dance so good, Caleb?” she asked, leaning towards his ear to be heard over the noise. She felt him tense.

“I was trained when I was younger.”  
“Really?” she asked. “I just learned from watching Mom sometimes and also the Traveler.” As she pulled back to get a good look at his face, the waltz came to a close. He smiled as they stilled, although a bit less honestly. She smiled wider, though, and shook her head. 

“It’s okay. One more dance? Then we can maybe find Nott or someone if you want.”

A slow waltz began with a gentle piano melody. Around them, the dancing pairs pulled closer together, beginning to sway in smaller circles. The distant buzz of the crowd seemed quieter now. She could feel butterflies in her stomach as he nodded, taking one of her hands and setting the other on her back.

“Ja, okay. Let’s dance.”

Jester felt her heart race as she settled against him, chest to chest. She was pretty sure she could feel his, too, racing at equal speed. It felt good, his warmth against her and his arm around her back. It must have been the warm night air that made her cheeks feel hot, and that made his stain a light pink, though, of course.

“Hey, Caleb.”

He met her gaze, raising an eyebrow. “Yes, Jester?”

“Is this better than the last fancy dance you went to?”

He hummed in thought, eyes growing a bit distant, and then a bit sad. As he mulled the question over, she leaned up and pressed her lips to his cheek. The reaction was immediate. He leaned back, clearly surprised, but she also noticed his cheeks darken to almost tomato red.

“I--” he began, but didn’t continue.

“You know~,” Jester said, starting to grin. “It’s rude to leave your dance partner hanging when they kiss your cheek. I don’t know about the Empire, but here you’re supposed to return the favor.”

Caleb’s little huff of amusement made her stomach do flips. With a sigh of feigned resignation, he leaned in for her cheek. On impulse, she turned her head. There was absolute stillness for the split second where their lips met. Caleb froze. Jester waited. Jester hoped.

His lips moved. She pressed closer against him, kissing back. Then he pulled away, taking up position for the waltz again, although with a wider smile on his lips. After a moment, he leaned down to murmur into her ear.

“Tonight is much better than the last ball I attended.”

**Author's Note:**

> blame and/or thanks for this fic's existence is owed to the widojest discord for the inspiration and also my friend Z for encouraging me.
> 
> i'm bravest-notts on tumblr where i regularly scream about caleb, jester, and widojest in the tags. hitteth me up if you so desire. i'm always happy to scream with other people.


End file.
